Author: Anayana White, Head of Communications at ASBN
✦ IN THIS POST: ASBN’s “How Businesses Can Impact Change” panel at San Francisco Climate Week 2026 brought together leaders from ClimateVoice, California Green Business Network, B Local Bay Area, Hanson Bridgett, Harrington Investments, Climate Positive Consulting, and Sphere. Below: the key takeaways, member resources, and what business leaders need to know to engage in policy advocacy.
Advocacy happens whether you engage or not. The question is whether your business will help shape policy, or have policy shaped for you.
That was the central message at our finale event during San Francisco Climate Week 2026. Over 50 business leaders, sustainability professionals, and policy advocates gathered at Hanson Bridgett to dig into a deceptively simple question: How do businesses actually drive systemic change?
The answer: business leadership and policy engagement go hand in hand. Companies have both the opportunity and the responsibility to use their voice. Not speaking up is also a policy decision—if you’re not advocating for your business and community’s interests, you’re letting others decide the policies you’ll have to live with.
At the USGBC Women in Green Breakfast, Arlene Blum, who spent 26 years removing toxic chemicals from everything from children’s pajamas to currently working towards getting them out of our cars and children’s carseats, said that she sees what she wants in her mind. She gets obsessed. Then she finds other people who want the same and they make a plan. Vision + community beats overwhelm every time.
At our “Does Your Mission Still Sell?” event on April 23, the takeaway landed hard: it shows up in product innovation, culture, hiring, supplier relationships, and leadership. When done right, it’s felt—not just stated. The panelists—with expertise spanning food systems, packaging, carbon accounting, and climate finance—made it clear: the companies raising capital, attracting talent, and shifting markets aren’t the ones talking about mission. They’re the ones building it into every decision.
Pinterest data showed searches for environmental kids’ projects up 220%. Consumers are 50% more likely to buy from a brand when they know a product is environmentally sustainable. Start from shared values—clean air, water, healthy children—not ideology. Mia Ketterling from Pinterest and Lindsay Dahl from Ritual both emphasized this: the gap between intent and action closes when people can see tangible outcomes. When sustainability becomes something you can touch, taste, and feel—not a distant abstraction—behavior shifts.
Many organizations have inclusion frameworks but lack formal pathways for younger leaders. Mentorship is someone talking to you. Sponsorship is someone opening doors when you’re not in the room. We need more of the latter. At the Women in Green Breakfast, this gap surfaced repeatedly. The invitation: be the first to reach out to the generation below you. Create the structures—councils, formal sponsorship programs, clear advancement pathways—that your organization didn’t have.
At our “How Businesses Can Impact Change” panel on April 24, with leaders from ClimateVoice, California Green Business Network, B Local Bay Area, Hanson Bridgett, Harrington Investments, Climate Positive Consulting, and Sphere, the message was unavoidable: companies have both the opportunity and the responsibility to use their voice to drive systemic change at San Francisco Climate Week 2026 and beyond.
After 20+ years on climate change and toxic chemicals policy, a scientific consensus exists. But people, especially business leaders who have a disproportionate weight with legislators, still need to call and email Congress. Social media can open eyes; political will moves policy. Real climate solutions require business momentum, community and policy action working together.
Member Spotlights & Calls to Action
Our “How Businesses Can Impact Change” panel brought together exceptional leaders, each with concrete ways for businesses to engage. Here’s what they shared and how to take action:
ClimateVoice: Assess Your Political Imprint
Deborah McNamara with ClimateVoice discussed the importance of climate policy advocacy and the need for companies to assess their political imprint, including trade association relationships and lobbying activities. Learn more at climatevoice.org and download their Climate Action Checklist for policy advocacy resources at work.
California Green Business Network: Get Certified, Shop Local
Lacey Raak invited businesses in areas with a Green Business Program (including San Francisco and many surrounding communities) to get certified through the California Green Business Network. She also encouraged everyone to find certified green businesses and shop locally. Shopping locally keeps about $68 of every $100 spent in the community, compared to roughly $43 at national chains. This supports local jobs, suppliers, and taxes—building a stronger, more resilient economy. Learn more at greenbusinessca.org.
B Local Bay Area: Collective Action Is No Longer Optional
Dan Post-Jacobs, Collective Action Chair at B Local Bay Area, reminded us that under the updated B Corp version 2.2 standards, companies of all sizes are expected to engage in coordinated efforts that drive systemic change on climate and social issues. Learn more and connect with collective action partners at blocalbayarea.com/collective-action.
Harrington Investments: Protect Shareholder Advocacy Rights
ASBN member Rebecca White of Harrington Investments highlighted the importance of shareholder advocacy and is urging everyone to take action to protect this right. Every day, decisions inside public companies affect investment and retirement savings nationwide. Shareholder proposals are how investors raise concerns, manage risk, and protect long-term value before problems escalate. The Securities and Exchange Commission is now considering eliminating shareholders’ right to place such proposals on corporate proxy statements. Investors must push back. Learn more at harringtoninvestments.com.
Sphere & Etho Capital: The Texas Lawsuit Win and Climate-Friendly 401(k)s
Alex Wright-Gladstein shared the role of ASBN members Sphere and Etho Capital in ASBC’s Texas lawsuit—an important win protecting shareholder rights to vote on climate risk. She urged everyone to add a climate-friendly option to their 401(k) plans by putting their HR or 401(k) advisor in touch with her. Learn more at oursphere.org.
Climate Positive Consulting & Hanson Bridgett: Leading Through Legal Advocacy
ASBN members David Jaber of Climate Positive Consulting and Jonathan Storper of Hanson Bridgett shared their incredible leadership in advancing climate and DEI policies through ASBN campaigns and Amicus briefs. Hanson Bridgett has played a foundational legal and advocacy role in promoting the benefit corporation legal structure—especially in California and, by extension, across the U.S. Learn more about their work at climatepositiveconsulting.com and at hansonbridgett.com.
Join ASBN
Join ASBNASBN makes the business case for sustainable policies and acts as a steward of your business voice on the national and federal levels. With a mission to advance a regenerative economy, we work on impact areas including tariffs, DEI, environmental business cases, safer chemicals and circular economy, regenerative agriculture, clean water, clean energy, business for democracy, air quality regulations, Tribal partnerships, alternative ownership models, and more.
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Questions? Connect with Natalia at membership@asbnetwork.org.
With special thanks for a fantastic lunch during our networking hour post-panel from Urban Remedy, sponsored by Hanson Bridgett, with drinks donated by Spindrift and Gruvi.
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American Sustainable Business Network (ASBN) amplifies the collective voice of sustainable business to lead the way to a regenerative economy that is stakeholder-driven, just, and prosperous. As a multi-issue, membership organization advocating on behalf of every business sector, size, and geography, ASBN works to advance its mission to inform, connect, and mobilize sustainable business leaders, transforming the public and private sectors toward a just and regenerative economy.